The View From Here

In the last two years I’ve had easily 300 inquiries from the
United Kingdom. It’s an incredible source for buyers; out of all
those inquiries we’ve seen eight properties purchased, including
some units in the new Bear Lodge currently under construction by Appia
Developments. This shows us that the Comox Valley is no longer a secret.
People are coming to the Comox Valley for the lifestyle we offer. What
other ski area in the world can you think of that has the same snowfall
as Mount Washington and is 45 minutes from 20 golf courses, two international
airports, two major hospitals, fishing, scuba diving, mountain biking
- and is affordable?

Purchasers are no longer looking at the mountain as their ski place,
they're looking at it as their recreational property that they can enjoy
all four seasons of the year. People interested in purchasing property
on Mount Washington are from all over the world. I’m getting an
average of 5,000 unique visits to my Web site every month, which is
pretty significant. And they’re from all over the world: it’s
amazing what countries come up in my stats. Zimbabwe has come up more
than once; Samoa; Iceland; some of the Soviet States; Mongolia. I can
only assume many of the people from these areas who visit my Web site
are Canadians working overseas. One of the buyers who has purchased
a unit at Bear Lodge is from Tampa. Florida. He bought solely because
of WestJet Airline’s entry into the Tampa market. Now he can get
from Tampa to the Valley inside of a day. Missing on Mount Washington
is the Alberta market. However, we see them buying in the Comox Valley
and taking day trips to the Resort, because they're leaving the snow
not coming to the snow.

There are going to be more options for buyers in the coming months.
Bear Lodge is half sold and it’s not even finished yet! A small
townhouse project is going to be developed next summer along Nordic
Way, across from Strathcona Park. Called ”Wildwood at Strathcona”,
these townhouses will be a little more upscale than any previous development
on the mountain. There is also talk of a hotel complex, similar to Deer
and Bear Lodges, which will likely have smaller suites. The most important
aspect of this complex, though, will be a retail component. Anything
that adds retail to the Resort will be significant. One thing is for
sure: the market is strong at Mount Washington and the world has noticed
that it is still affordable.